Advances in medical science have brought technological improvement and more sophisticated equipment into the medical setting. By way of example, many medical tables in use today in operating and emergency rooms are highly mechanized and adaptable to many different needs and scenarios. These tables are quite expensive, and while solving many medical needs, challenges, recognized by Applicant, have arisen to prevent contamination of such equipment, which must then be taken out of use for extensive, time consuming and meticulous decontamination. Cross-contamination in the medical setting is of major concern.
Preventing contamination of equipment and exposure of personnel has long been a concern in the medical field, particularly in surgical and emergency room procedures where blood, body fluids, medications and irrigation fluids can quickly accumulate to produce large amounts of fluids that are released and difficult to retain. During intense medical treatment, for example in high trauma situations, the doctors and medical staff should be able to focus on the patient and not be expected to turn their focus to clean-up and control of the possibly contaminating fluids during the patient's treatment. In certain injuries, such as injuries to the head, chest and abdomen, higher than average amounts of blood and irrigation fluids may be discharged, compounding the contamination and fluid control problem. In other scenarios, specialty equipment, such as highly mechanical tables and/or the underpinnings of surgical tables are prone to contamination during procedures. Still in other examples, medical equipment that may be susceptible to frequent patient interaction, such as a patient pushing an I.V. stand and/or railings on patient beds, may be prone to contamination. Issues with health, contamination, cross-contamination and safety are of major concern, especially in these types of situations. Clean up and decontamination of medical equipment can be time-consuming, costly and may take needed medical supplies out of service for unacceptable amounts of time. In addressing these issues, however, ease of use and accessibility must remain high as contamination issues are addressed. These concerns are also balanced with the economics involved with providing a solution, as many alternatives are cost prohibitive in hospital, medical and first responder scenarios.
Therefore, Applicant desires an economical self-drape system, apparatuses, kits and methods that provide better management of protection against contamination in medical situations to minimize contamination, clean-up and safety concerns.